Welcome back to the Cubs Beat newsletter. Jordan Bastian has covered baseball for MLB.com since 2005, including the Cubs since the 2019 season. |
CHICAGO -- The home run that Seiya Suzuki launched in Cincinnati on Sunday was jaw-dropping, even by the standards of a slugger who has earned a reputation for making extremely hard contact in his time with the Cubs. “He killed it,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. The obliterated pitch in question was a 97.2 mph sinker from Reds reliever Luis Mey that tailed inside and found the barrel of the red-hot Suzuki. Chicago’s designated hitter pulled it to left with an exit velocity of 116.2 mph, marking the hardest-hit homer by a Cubs hitter since Kyle Schwarber belted one at 117.1 mph on April 24, 2018. Not only was the home run a Statcast spectacle, but it was a three-run shot that put the Cubs ahead in the eighth to complete an 11-8 comeback victory. It was an exclamation point amid an overwhelming offensive stretch for Suzuki, who was named the National League’s Player of the Week on Tuesday.
“His ability to hit and to continue to develop hitting premium velocity has been really important,” Hoyer said. “I just see a guy that’s more aggressive both in demeanor and also in counts. He was a little bit more passive at the plate before. He’s got guys on base and he’s looking to do damage, and he has.”
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After receiving the second weekly honor of his career, Suzuki then delivered an RBI single on Tuesday to become the first player to reach 50 RBIs this season in the Majors. He kept his foot on the gas on Wednesday, crushing a pitch 111.7 mph to the wall in left-center at Wrigley Field for an RBI double. That is just how things have been going of late for the Cubs’ No. 3 hitter. “I don’t know if I can say it’s the best [stretch of my career],” Suzuki said via his interpreter, Edwin Stanberry. “But I feel like I’ve been doing really well. Obviously, I’m going to have moments where the performance isn’t as good, and I’ll talk to the coaches and see what adjustments I need to make. But I’m happy with how it’s gone so far.”
The NL Central-leading Cubs -- featuring one of the best offenses in the game this season -- have certainly been thrilled.
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During his standout week, Suzuki slashed .480/.552/1.000 with three homers, four doubles, four walks, nine runs scored and 10 RBIs for the North Siders. Through 52 games overall, he has hit .273/.333/.569 with 14 homers, 16 doubles and 51 RBIs, while spending most of his days batting behind star outfielder Kyle Tucker. “He’s been right in the middle of everything. It’s important,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “He’s hitting behind a really good hitter. And sometimes you could say it puts pressure on him. But other teams have to pitch to Kyle often, and that’s a good thing for us. “[Suzuki] is doing everything required of that. And he’s carrying a big weight. He’s carrying a big load for us, for sure.” |
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CUBS’ CATCHING PLANS WITH AMAYA OUT |
The Cubs learned this week that catcher Miguel Amaya will be sidelined around four to six weeks due to his strained left oblique. Counsell said the hope would be to have Amaya back prior to the All-Star break in July. With Amaya sidelined at the moment, the North Siders promoted the more experienced Reese McGuire to step in as the backup to Carson Kelly, as opposed to catching prospect Moisés Ballesteros. Simply put, the team believes Ballesteros (Pipeline’s No. 4 Cubs prospect and No. 61 on the Top 100) needs more experience behind the plate. “Look, the most important thing to understand about Moisés is he’s 21 years old,” Counsell said. “And he’s playing a position that is the hardest position to play. I think it’s so important that he plays regularly at the position, because that position requires more reps than the other positions.” Ballesteros was called up earlier this month while Ian Happ was on the injured list to give the Cubs an additional bat, and the prospect spent all five games he played as a designated hitter. With Triple-A Iowa this season, Ballesteros has hit .344 with a .904 OPS through 41 games, but he still has just 258 games caught in his Minor League career. “It’s learning how to call a game, it’s blocking, it’s framing,” Hoyer said. “I think all of those things, they can improve. It’s not because he doesn’t have the ability, but because he’s so young and he hasn’t done it that much. I think with where we are right now, it felt like the right decision to bring up Reese. “That’s not a knock on Moisés. We obviously called him up earlier, because we believe in his bat so much. I think the offense is ahead of the catching, but that’s probably natural.” |
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Suzuki collected his 50th RBI in his 51st game of this season with a run-scoring single in Tuesday’s 4-3 win over the Rockies. Who was the last Cubs batter to notch at least 50 RBIs in his first 51 games of a campaign? A. Derrek Lee B. Sammy Sosa C. Ernie Banks D. Hack Wilson |
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• Matt Shaw notches first career walk-off hit in win over Rockies. Read more » • Justin Steele plans on being around Cubs more as he rehabs. Read more » • Jameson Taillon logs strong outing in win over Colorado. Read more » • Prospect Jonathon Long off to impressive start in Cubs’ system. Read more » • Pete Crow-Armstrong fastest to 15-15 season for Cubs. Read more » |
FUN PROMOS THIS WEEKEND AT WRIGLEY |
“The ball’s been going out of the ballpark this year. He’s been a little bit more aggressive, both in counts, but also in how he’s swinging. He’s looking to do damage, which I think is fantastic. He’s taken advantage of a lot of opportunities. He has a lot of guys on base in front of him and he’s been really good in those situations.” -- Hoyer, on Suzuki |
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A. Derrek Lee On June 1 of Lee’s incredible 2005 season, the former Cubs first baseman went 5-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs in a 9-5 win over the Dodgers to reach 50 RBIs in his first 51 games that year. Per MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, Suzuki is one of only nine Cubs to achieve that feat since the RBI became an official stat in 1920. |
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